RBI issues operational guidelines for financial inclusion

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday issued operational guidelines for the implementation of a transfer system for servicing low-value accounts and extending banking infrastructure to under-served low income areas.

The regulator asked banks to follow the 'one district-many banks-one leader bank' model in villages in which the designated bank under the financial inclusion plan and the fund-transfer system varied.

According to guidelines, the state government shall designate the leader bank, in consultation with RBI's regional office and the state-level bankers' committee. The leader bank would secure funds from the state government and arrange to transfer funds through inter-bank transfer to other banks.